Author Archives: Dazzling Erin

So, I Watched Perry Mason: The Case of the Fateful Framing (1992, Dir. by Christian I. Nyby II)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

Truman York (David Soul), a painter who faked his death in a motorcycle accident five years earlier, reemerges because someone is selling forgeries of his work.  When York turns up dead, a photographer (Mark Moses) is arrested for the crime.  Luckily, the photographer went to college with Ken Malansky (William R. Moses) and Ken is able to convince Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) to take the case.  (If you’re going to get arrested for murder, it helps to be a friend of Ken or Perry’s.)

I was disappointed with this entry in the Perry Mason series.  It had potential but it never really reached it.  I was more interested in how the artist faked his death for five years instead of figuring out who killed him.  Raymond Burr was obviously unwell when he shot this movie and there were times when it was painful to watch him as he had to learn against a wall just to be able to stay standing while delivering his lines.  I felt bad for Burr watching this because, even though he was great in the role of Perry Mason, it was obvious that he was in pain.

Maybe because Raymond Burr couldn’t do as much as usual, Ken got to do more than usual  in this installment.  What’s strange is that the accused photographer was also interrogating people and looking for clues.  He had just been released on bail and he was on trial for murder.  He should have been laying low instead of tracking down witnesses.

I love the Perry Mason films and I have so many good memories of watching them with my aunt.  This one didn’t do it for me.

I Watched Perry Mason: The Case of the Fatal Fashion (1991, Dir. by Christian I. Nyby II)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

Perry Mason (Raymond Burr), Della Street (Barbara Hale), and Ken Malansky (William R. Moses) are in New York when an old friend of Perry’s, magazine editor Lauren Jeffreys (Diana Muldaur) is accused of murdering a rival editor, Dyan Draper (Valerie Harper). Dyan was infamous for writing about the personal lives of celebrities in her column so there’s a ton of possible suspects. While Ken teams up with a mobster named Tony Loomis (Robert Clohessy) to search for clues, Perry finds himself facing off against a young district attorney (Scott Baio) who is smarter than he seems.

This Perry Mason movie is unique because, for once, the prosecutor is as good an attorney as Perry.  It reminded me of how, when the movies started, David Ogden Stiers always played the prosecutor and came across like someone who would probably win if he has going up against anyone other than Perry Mason.  Even though I immediately thought of Bob Loblaw as soon as I saw him, Scott Baio gives a good performance as a lawyer who worships Perry and can’t wait to face him in court.  For once, there’s mutual respect between the two sides.

The mystery was another one of those where I was able to guess who the killer was from the start.  They had to really stretch things to get the mob involved so that Ken could team up with Tony.  (Ken wanted to bring the killer to court while Tony just waned to shoot them.)  Also, it was obvious that Raymond Burr was not doing well when he filmed this movie.  In almost every scene, he’s either seated or leaning against something.  There are only 6 more Perry Mason films featuring Burr after this one and one of those aired after he died.  Burr still gives a commanding performance whenever Perry’s in court, though.  Sick or not, there’s no other attorney you want on your side.

So, I Watched Perry Mason: The Case of the Glass Coffin (1991, Dir. by Christian I. Nyby II)

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World famous magician David Katz (Peter Scolari) is accused of murdering his assistant (Nancy Lee Grahn) while performing a trick at a charity show.  The prosecution says that David killed her to cover-up a pregnancy that was the result of a drunken, one-night stand.  However, Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) and Ken Malansky (William R. Moses) discover that there were many people who might have a motive for killing the victim.

After the previous emotionally-charged Perry Mason movie, this entry felt pretty bland.  I liked Peter Scolari as the accused magician but otherwise, this was a little boring.  I guessed who would be playing the murderer as soon as I saw their name during the opening credits.  I did find it amusing that Perry and the prosecutor (played by Bob Gunton) seemed to sincerely dislike each other.  That added some bite to the courtroom scenes but I really do miss David Ogden Stiers’s as Perry’s regular courtroom opponent.

At the end of the movie, Perry took the jury to the theater where the murder occurred and then cross-examined the witnesses in the theater.  I guess the movie’s producers were trying to do something new but it just didn’t feel right for Perry to get his confession anywhere other than in a courtroom.

I Loved Perry Mason: The Case of the Maligned Mobster (1991, Dir. by Ron Satlof)

Posted on by Dazzling Erin

Despite being asked to take the case by an old friend (Mason Adams), Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) is reluctant to defend Johnny Sorrento (Michael Nader) in court.  Johnny is a former gangster who has been credibly accused of murder in the past.  Now, he’s on trial for killing his wife and not even Perry is totally convinced that he’s innocent.

Of the 18 Perry Mason films that I’ve watched so far, this was definitely the best.  This is the first time that I’ve seen Perry defend someone who he both dislikes and, even more importantly, distrusts and Raymond Burr was really convincing whenever he got angry at Johnny.  For once, the case wasn’t wrapped up as neatly as usual.  Solving the murder of Johnny’s wife meant delving into a past murder and it uncovered a lot of dark secrets.  The identity of the killer was a real surprise but there was a lot more going on than just solving the mystery of who killed Johnny’s wife.  At the end of this movie, Perry looked like he was about to cry, no matter how much Della (Barbara Hale) tried to comfort him.

Sharing much more would be the same as spoiling all of the movie’s twists and turns so I’ll just repeat that this is the best of the Perry Mason movies that I’ve seen so far.  The guest cast is great, especially Mason Adams and Paul Anka.  The Perry Mason films always follow the same plot and sometimes, they can blend together but this one made a real impression and really took me by surprise.